► More rugged Porsche 911s in the pipeline
► Chairman Oliver Blume confirms ‘a third pillar’
► Off-road 911s to join GT and heritage models
The evergreen Porsche 911 range continues to expand apace; today there are 26 derivatives listed on the UK configurator. And that number is set to grow further as Porsche readies a raft of more rugged, off-road and retro 911s, CAR can reveal.
Porsche chairman Oliver Blume told us that the 911 Dakar (below) unveiled at the 2022 Los Angeles auto show was just the beginning of a move to broaden the 911 range.
Read the full interview with Oliver Blume here
The new strand of tougher 911s makes sense: not for nothing has Porsche developed rooftop tents, built a rally-raid GT3 on stilts in the Dakar and offered ice-driving courses. It’s a deliberate shift to move its core model into the rough ’n’ tumble of the great outdoors.
The Porsche boss explains why more off-road 911s are on the cards
In an exclusive interview with CAR, Blume explained the rationale behind expanding the Porsche 911 range – and revealed that the product strategy was inspired by how the sportswear industry had broadened its trainer portfolios.
‘We have the 911 base, stretching from the entry model to the Turbo S,’ the chairman of the executive board said. ‘Then we have the very sporty ones, the GT models. We also have the heritage pillar – and there the idea came from the sports industry. We saw the sports shoes from the 1970s and 80s and thought that could work for Porsche too, so we brought the 50th edition and the 60th edition with the Sport Classic (below). We are considering bringing 1970s and 80s-inspired models too…
‘Very few global brands are able to bring these successful items from the past and connect them with modern technology. But Porsche can. Then we thought “Why not a third pillar, besides sporty GT and heritage models? Why not off-road, too?” Now we will see how the market success of the Dakar pans out. And then maybe there will be more to come. The door is now open…’
Porsche 911’s 60th anniversary
In 2023 Porsche will mark a trio of important birthdays: ‘We will celebrate 60 years of the 911, 75 years of our company and the 80th birthday of Wolfgang Porsche,’ Blume told CAR.
Will the company launch products to accompany these anniversaries? ‘Of course, you can expect them!’ he replied.
Why Porsche is veering off-road
Blume said that the company was adapting its portfolio to keep up with changing consumer demand. ‘We are changing our business focus to offer to our customers what they expect in different regions of the world. The mindset of costumers is also changing, especially looking to the younger generations.’
Standby for Porsche 911 range extensions to continue, then. With the choice of rear- or all-wheel drive, sporty hybrid powertrains coming soon and a corporate desire to win back some of the retro business taken by the likes of Singer, it sounds like 2023 and beyond will bring some interesting new varieties of 911kind.
Read all our Porsche 911 reviews